Galactic Navy Spec Ops Walkthrough

This walkthrough is based on the adventures of Smivs and Maik in their quest to solve the special Galactic Navy mission. Hints are given step by step and encoded with rot13 so you can read them one at a time without spoiling the complete mission.

Background

Nsgre lbh pbzcyrgr lbhe gragu fbegvr sbe gur Tnynpgvp Anil naq qbpx ng n FrpPbz fgngvba va tnynkl 6, lbh ner orvat nccebnpurq nobhg n fcrpvny zvffvba. Nqzveny Xhegm, n irel fhpprffshy pbzznaqre bs n Anil syrrg, nccneragyl ybfg vg naq qbrf abg erfcbaq gb gur Anil pbzznaq nalzber. Lbhe gnfx vf gb svaq uvz naq erghea uvz gb nal FrpPbz fgngvba. Gur Evevfb flfgrz vf tvira nf uvf ynfg xabja jurernobhgf. Ur vf fgngvbarq ba gur Orurzbgu "Aryyvr".

Recommended equipment

Gurer jvyy or svrepr svtugvat vaibyirq. Na veba nffrq fuvc vf uvtuyl erpbzzraqrq. Fgbpx hc ba RPZ uneqrarq zvffvyrf, pneel na raretl obzo, naq sbhe ynfref. Vqrnyyl, guerr bs gurz ner zvyvgnel ynfref naq bar vf n ornz ynfre. Znxr fher lbh ner rdhvccrq jvgu jvgpu shry vawrpgbef.

Step 1

Gb svaq Nqzveny Xhegm, syl gb gur Evevfb flfgrz. Nccebnpuvat sebz gur jvgpucbvag ornpba, uvf syrrg vf oruvaq gur cynarg. Syl gbjneqf gur fha gb pheir nebhaq Evevfb naq lbh jvyy svaq uvf syrrg.

Step 2

Qbpx jvgu gur Aryyvr. Lbh jvyy or ncceruraqrq ol Anil fbyqvref naq gnxra gb zrrg Nqzveny Xhegm. Ur unf orra rkcrpgvat lbh naq bssref gb wbva uvz.

Step 3

Gryy uvz gung ur arrqf uryc. Vs vafgrnq lbh nterr gb wbva uvz gur fgbel snfg sbejneqf naq lbh ernyvfr gung Nqzveny Xhegm ybfg vg vaqrrq. Lbh syrr naq orpbzr n shtvgvir vafgnagyl. Vs lbh qba'g wbva uvz ur trgf natel ohg yrnirf lbh gb tb. Lbh unir gur punapr gb fgbpx hc ba shry, zvffvyrf rgp. orsber lbh yrnir gur Aryyvr.

Step 4

Fubbg gur Aryyvr hagvy vg fgnegf bbmvat cynfzn, gura fubbg vg fbzr zber hagvy n Anil fuhggyr yrnirf vg. Sbyybj gur fuhggyr naq fubbg vg tragyl hagvy vg nf jryy bbmrf cynfzn. Guvf vf jurer lbh fubhyq hfr lbhe ornz ynfre hayrff lbh ner irel tragyr jvgu lbhe zvyvgnel ynfre. Riraghnyyl, Xhegm rwrpgf va na rfpncr pncfhyr. Fpbbc vg hc naq lbh ner ernql gb svavfu gur zvffvba.

Tactics

Nsgre lbh yrnir gur Aryyvr, trg nobhg 20 zvyrf qvfgnapr sebz vg. Fubbg vg jvgu lbhe nsg ynfre. Lbh orpbzr n shtvgvir naq Anil ivcref tb nsgre lbh. Gel gb nggenpg nf znal nf lbh pna, gura naavuvyngr gurz jvgu lbhe raretl obzo. Bs pbhefr, vs lbh ner na rkprcgvbany cvybg, lbh pna xvyy gurz va n zber genqvgvbany snfuvba. Trg onpx gbjneqf gur syrrg, bayl pybfr rabhtu gb trg gur arnerfg fuvcf ba lbhe enqne. Ghea bss lbhe ratvarf, favcr gurz sebz gur qvfgnapr. Hfr lbhe nsg ynfre vs gurl trg pybfr juvyr tb njnl. Fbzr bs gur ynetr fuvcf sver ybgf bs RPZ uneqrarq zvffvyrf ng lbh. Bhgsyl gurz ol ergerngvat, hfvat jvgpu shry vawrpgvba ohefgf gb xrrc gur qvfgnapr. Riraghnyyl gurl qrgbangr bapr gurl eha bhg bs shry. Vs lbh ner nggnpxrq ol gbb znal bs gur erznvavat ivcref naq gurl trg n tbbq fubg ng lbh qrfcvgr gur qvfgnapr, qvfgenpg gurz jvgu bar bs lbhe zvffvyrf. Pbagvahr trggvat pybfr gb gur syrrg, cvpxvat bss n fuvc be gjb naq ergerngvat gb bhgsyl gurve zvffvyrf hagvy bayl ovt fybj fuvcf erznva. Abj tvir gur Aryyvr n tbbq orngvat naq jngpu sbe gur fuhggyr. Jura lbh tb nsgre gur fuhggyr, znxr fher gung lbh qb abg trg jvguva 5 zvyrf bs gur ovt fuvcf, bgurejvfr lbh jvyy or rnfl tnzr sbe gurve cynfzn pnaabaf.

Finale

Gnxr Xhegm gb gur FrpPbz fgngvba gung vf 4 be 5 flfgrzf njnl sebz Evevfb. Hcba ragrevat lbh ner terrgrq jvgu gur fgnaqneq FrpPbz bcravat. Pubbfr gb tb nobhg lbhe bja ohfvarff naq svanyyl lbh erprvir n gunax lbh zrffntr naq unir 25x perqvgf zber va lbhe onynapr.

Fiction

After finally making it to Competent, I decided to enlist in the Navy. I was given an assignement to repel a Thargoid invasion of Reinen (on the other side of Chart 1...sigh). Anyway, after jumping about fifty times (due to dying in transit once and having to start over), I made it to the system and formed up with the reserve squadron - two Asps and two Cobras (a Mark I and a Mark III), along with two Sidewinders I hired as wingmen at the last station. I had upgraded to a Cobra Mark II-X by this point, with a mil laser forward and a beam laser aft.

Upon forming up with the reserve squadron, I started seeing lots of stuff in the distance, just outside sensor range - red clouds of dispersing plasma from Thargoid battleship plasma cannons and the main batteries of Naval frigates, the telltale green beams of Tharg lasers, the red lines of civilian weapons, the purplish fingers of police fightercraft, and of course lots of explosions. We were just about to reach the main furball when five flashing contacts show up on sensors - active Thargons, with no control ship in sight (it was there, just lurking outside of sensor range). Inexplicably, they all targeted me. My only two missiles dispatched two of them, my forward laser a third, and the fourth fell to my aft gun just as someone (fairly sure it was a Python who we passed earlier) destroyed the control craft and the last went silent.

Resuming course, I noticed something ominous - there were no more flashes and not a trace of laser fire. We started passing debris - a lot of it, mostly cargo pods, with one or two dead Thargons and several metal fragments mixed in. I scooped an escape pod, containing a human colonial whose name I don't recall. Aside from the aforementioned Python, which was puttering along all lonely and escort-less, my squad were the only contacts within range. This went on for several boring and vaguely creepy minutes - we were in the middle of the spacelane in a usually-crowded system, and we were the only people there, puttering slowly along because we were flying in formation and masslocking each other.

Finally something interesting happened - well over a dozen contacts at my eight o'clock and extremely low - Thargoids, every one of them, including a cruiser and three battleships (and a lot of Thargons). I tilted down and to the left and hit my injectors, blowing right past them as my squadmates maneuvered to engage. I shut off my engines and switched to aft laser, hammering one of the battleships as it opened up on my comrades. When it noticed me, I turned around and switched back to fore guns, pounding it until the laser overheated and I turned and ran. I had read about Captain Hesperus' trick involving food canisters and injectors, so I had started carrying an emergency 2-ton supply of food with me everywhere for exactly this eventuality. I slowed to a stop, let the ship catch up (taking a lot of damage as a result), and then hit injectors, ejected both canisters in rapid succession to damage him, and finished him off with a prolonged Beam Laser blast.

Turned around and headed back to take out the last Battleship (my squadmates and escorts had taken out one, losing an Asp and the Mark I in the process). We destroyed it, with effort and determination and no finesse whatsoever, and turned to finish off the last few Thargs - a Cruiser and an Invader, plus their fighter complement. The Invader goes down fast. The Cruiser was more of a challenge, especially since my comrades started missing all the time, it was targeting me exclusively, and cumulative battle damage had left me near destruction. I kept firing anyway, as it whittled away at my shields and energy banks. Right before my energy banks reached zero, I ejected. As the pod flew away I saw the cruiser explode (although I wasn't credited with the kill as I didn't fire the final shot). Annoyingly, the ship I ejected from survived, which means some human colonial in an escape pod got a free Cobra Mark II-X.

When I launched again the system was notably devoid of Thargoids and relatively safe. I headed back to the nearest Sector Command and got my next mission. Master Bates, 2009)